Ventricular assistance devices include left ventricular (LV) pumps that can help the heart pump blood to the circulatory system, such as in a patient awaiting a heart transplant or such as to assist in treating cardiac insufficiency of patients of New York Heart Association (NYHA) Classes III to IV.
For example, Jeevanandam et al. U.S. Pat. No. 8,684,905 B2 relates to devices and methods for implanting, positioning, removing, replacing, and operating intra-aortic balloon pumps.
In another example, European Patent Number EP 1 789 112 B1 relates to an apparatus for long-term assisting a left ventricle to pump blood.
In a further example, European Patent Number EP 2 151 257 A1 relates to a method and apparatus for long-term assisting a left ventricle to pump blood, including a transluminally-deliverable support structure.